Ancient, British and World Coins, Tokens, Historical Medals and Banknotes

The burning of Farmhouses, 1901, small unsigned silver Dutch medal, burning farmhouse, reverse 16th and 17th century soldiers fighting, 33mm. About as struck (£50-60)

Public opinion in continental Europe was overwhelmingly pro-Boer during the South African War; Britain was seen as a bully punishing a tiny independent nation for daring to defy her imperial pretensions. Much of this anti-British sentiment was expressed in newspaper cartoons, prints, and picture postcards, but a few medals were also made; this example castigates the British authorities for terrorising the civilian population and compares the Boer struggle with the Dutch campaign to rid the Netherlands of her Spanish occupiers in the 16th and 17th century.